Earth Intimacy

Wildflowers are shy and illusive. They reach up from fallen leaves in demur silence. It would be easy to overlook them. But to stumble upon their subtle beauty, while the nights are still cold and the tree limbs bare, to stop and gaze upon silken petals and inhale the rich Earth smells that surround them, this is to feel Earth's breath upon your face.
A budding Cutleaf Toothwort, not yet ready to open its pedals.

A Walk in Nature

"... in the distant woods or fields, in unpretending sprout-lands or pastures tracked by rabbits, even in a bleak and, to most, cheerless day….I thus dispose of the superfluous and see things as they are, grand and beautiful. –Thoreau’s Journal, January 7, 1857
A walk in nature, in a place new and unfamiliar or a familiar path, ever fresh with seasonal stirrings, enlivens both body and spirit. I often refer to walks as hikes, yet my experience more closely resembles wanderings. Movement becomes secondary to the sensory pleasures unfolding. Mundane worries recede and every step, every breath becomes vibrant with natural riches. Soon, separateness also fades, and in its place, a sense of oneness, an envelopment that renews, deepens and awakens, and without effort, touches infinite tranquility.

Taking It Easy

After tackling something hard, whether it’s a disappointment, recovery from illness, finishing up taxes or completing a difficult project, I like to then do something idle, something refreshing and easy.

Flowers are forgiving, rambling, delicately layered like daydreams. Sketch them, splash on color, pay no particular attention to their line or form. They offer no pressure, no deadlines, only soften the world with their hue and fragrance--and visit us ever so gently.